The 2018 Oscars is set to witness a magnified body of members.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has issued 928 invitations to new members, the Oscar-granting body announced Monday.
A concerted effort to ensure adequate depiction of diversity in the cinematic world’s ultimate recognition bestowed by the awards, this is the fourth year since the idea of incorporating members from around the world was incepted in 2014.
Forty nine percent of the 2018 invitees are women, while thirty eight percent are people of color from among the massive list that would significantly boost all round representation in the global award conferring body.
Featuring in the humongous array of invitees are twenty Indian film personalities including
- Actors Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Soumitra Chatterjee, Madhabi Mukherjee, Naseeruddin Shah, Tabu, Ali Fazal, Anil Kapoor
- Producers Aditya Chopra and Guneet Monga (The Lunchbox, Haraamkhor)
- Cinematographer Anil Mehta (Beyond the Clouds and Highway)
- Costume Designers Dolly Ahluwalia and Manish Malhotra
- Sound Designers Debajit Changmai (Raazi, Court, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag) and Bishwadeep Chatterjee (Madras Cafe, 3 Idiots)
- Production Designers Subrata Chakraborty and Amit Ray (Haider, Padmaavat, Raazi)
- Film Editor Ballu Saluja (Dangal, lagaan, Jodha Akbar)
- Veteran Music Composers Usha Khanna and Sneha Khanwalkar (Gangs of Wasseypur, Detective Byomkesh Bakshy).
Given that access to the membership of the Academy is by invitation only, the calling of a score of Indian artists does augur well with the entire Indian film fraternity at large.
